Committee hears emotional testimony on anti‑bullying, suicide‑prevention bill; DCS director opposes current wording

Representative Dale Devon introduced House Bill 1404, saying the measure addresses teen bullying and suicide and has been the product of months of stakeholder work.

Multiple witnesses described personal or observed harms they said resulted from bullying that schools did not address effectively. Rachel Van Alstyne, a mother and social worker, described her son’s suicidal ideation after sustained bullying she reported to his school; she said an investigation revealed 17 students participating and, she said, no consequences were imposed. "Our schools assume the role of parent while our children are in their care," Van Alstyne said, and she urged support for HB 1404 and its amendments.

Tiffany Glick, a licensed school‑based speech‑language pathologist, and other educators described repeated reports to the Department of Child Services and a lack of follow‑up; Glick said one former student died and school reporting and mandated‑reporter efforts had not prevented that outcome. "Because of this negligence and lack of communication, one of my dear sweet student's life was taken by members of her own family due to severe negligence and abuse she endured," Glick said.

Many witnesses urged clearer communication, accountability, and resources across schools, the Department of Education and DCS to prevent and respond to serious bullying and child safety concerns.

Adam Krupp, the newly appointed director of the Department of Child Services, told the committee he sympathizes with witnesses and is committed to reforming the system, but said he must oppose HB 1404 as written. Krupp said DCS's statutory mission is to respond to abuse and neglect by parents, guardians and custodians; he argued that requiring DCS to assess all allegations of child‑on‑child abuse reported by schools would "completely reshape DCS" and risk overwhelming the agency's hotline and staff.

Krupp provided hotline data: he said the DCS hotline received 214,000 reports in fiscal year 2024 (about 626 calls per weekday and an average of 220 calls per weekend day). He warned that adding child‑on‑child school allegations would exponentially increase the volume of reports and could ‘‘break the system’’ before reforms and resources could be put in place.

Krupp said he is open to collaborative solutions and to convening stakeholders but cautioned against a statutory mandate that would immediately require DCS to investigate every school‑reported child‑on‑child allegation within a five‑day window. Committee members and witnesses discussed alternatives and asked Krupp to work with the committee on technical fixes and operational solutions.

Committee leadership said they would hold the bill for further work; no final committee vote was taken that day.

Why it matters: Witnesses described repeated failures of school‑level reporting and DCS follow‑up that they said left children at risk. DCS leadership warned that immediate statutory expansion of DCS’s investigative responsibilities could overwhelm current capacity; the exchange framed the trade‑off between accountability, statutory mission and operational capacity.

What happens next: The committee will work on amendments and hold HB 1404 for further consideration. Witnesses and DCS leadership agreed to continue stakeholder discussions.